Council of the Countries
by pbaxter
Summary: Konoha sends an embassy to the Council of the countries. All is peaceful, even amoung the representatives of the Mist, but not all is as it seems. NaruHina, ShikaTema, NejiTen, maybe others. Rating may change.
1. Prolouge

Ok, a new fic. Im afraid the other one's been put on hold, I've just lost interest. I may pick up on it again, depending on demand and whether I can be bothered, but at any rate, I'm in 6th form now, lots of work, so don't expect daily updates.

Enjoy, and please R&R!

"Shikamaru Nara, I formally congratulate you on making Jonin. Well done!" Tsunade smiled at the newest Jonin, who was slouching, and looked a little cross.

"Yeah, thank you. Now, I was wondering-" The Hokage cut him off, looking a little annoyed herself.

"Don't take this achievement lightly! You're the first to pass the Jonin exam first time around since Itachi Uchiha. At least look proud!" she pointed at him.

"I would, if the test had been hard. For a test, it wasn't particularly testing... now, if I may ask, why did you suddenly make me take the Jonin exam so suddenly? And why was it so easy? Even Kakashi had problems with that exam." Tsunade gave him a very strange look, one which may have resembled innocence had it come from anyone but Tsunade, one of the legendary Sanin, the med-nin famed for being able to heal any wound, and the gambler who was still known throughout the land as 'the legendary sucker' for her incredible gambling inability.

"Is it not simply possible that you are a particularly powerful ninja?"

"Regardless of how strong I am, the Jonin exam should still have challenged me!"

"...well, i geuss even I can't get things past you. Shikamaru Nara, I will now give you your first mission as a jonin. You are to lead the Leaf's embassy to the council of the countries, and there you will represent the Hokage at the table of ninja nigotiations. It will be left to you to keep the members of the embassy under control, and they are to protect you. Do I make your objectives clear?" Shikamaru looked at her as if to say 'What a drag. I'm going for a sleep, goodnight!'

"Three questions. One- why do I need to be Jonin for this?"

"Almost all of the ninja villages will have representatives at the council for a village like konoha to send anyone of lower rank than Jonin would be insulting, and I consider you the most qualified to negotiate for our village."

"Secondly- What exactly do you want me to negotiate?"

"That will be explained once you have been told who else is with you."

"which brings me nicely to my last question. Who will be coming with me?" Tsunade smiled evilly, her eyes flashing. Shikamaru sighed and hung his head.

"I can already tell, this is going to be troublesome..."

Quite short, but only an intro. I should update again a little later, so please R&R!


	2. Chapter 1

Half an hour later, seven ninja, including the newly appointed Jonin, stood before the Hokage.

"Ah, good, Sakura, you've arrived... I hope your not picking up Kakashi's ways, you're late!" Sakura, who had just arrived, blushed.

"My apologies, Lady Hokage." There was a thumping below them.

"And here comes the final member of your team. 5... 4... 3... 2... 1..." The door exploded open.

"Oi, granny Tsunade! What mission have you assigned me now?" Naruto looked exited, and he looked around the room to find his teammates. He stepped back a little when he saw so many people. "Hey, whats this? The reunion of the rookie 9? where are Shino and Kiba, Hinata?" Hinata blushed.

"They are away, on family missions. Now quiet down, Naruto. And show some respect, and some manners, or I might have to withdraw you from the mission." Tsunade came to Hinata's rescue. Naruto looked insulted. He straightened up, and looked the Hokage in the eye.

"I can be respectful! Lady Hokage, I apologies for my rudeness, please continue." Tsunade looked mutinous.

"If you can be polite, if you know what respect is, it would do you good to show it for me every once in a while, brat!"

"I just did!" Naruto protested. Tsunade stood up, looking as if she was about to lay into Naruto. Catching herself at the last moment, she addressed the entire group.

"You are being sent to represent Konoha to the Council of the Countries. You are to protect Shikamaru, who is going as my representative for the Table of Ninja Negotiations, and take part in the events of the court. Do you understand?" The seven nodded. " Good. You will be traveling first to the village hidden in the sand, where you will meet with the Kazekage's representatives, and then you will continue with them to the Country of Earth, where the council will take place. For those who are wondering why such a large group is being sent, it is because sending a large group to something like a court, where they will earn no money, is a display of power- it shows we can afford to send more ninja than are strictly necessary. It makes us look strong." She added, seeing Naruto's look of confusion. "Are we all clear?" Once again, 7 people nodded. "Good, now, this is more specifically for Shikamaru. This is what you will be negotiating...

--

The morning mist still hung thick on the ground as the nine shinobi met at the gates of Konoha, prepared for a long journey. As the leader, Shikamaru began to count heads.

"Me, Ino, Chouji, Neji, Hinata, Tenten, Lee, Sakura, Na... absent!... surprise, surprise. We're just waiting for Naruto." The group silently agreed. Shikamaru continued counting. "Guy... wait, Guy?! What are you dong here?!" The Jonin looked scandalous.

"I wish to see my team off! That is clear- Ah! Maybe your fire of youth burns low! Do not fear, a little time with my Lee will soon have it blazing bright once more!" he cried, striking his 'nice guy' pose.

"...whatever. It's too early..." Shikamaru responded.

"Must you always embarrass us?" Neji questioned. Tenten agreed.

"My, all your fires seem to be dieing today..." Guy shook his head.

"Mine still burns bright , sensei! I will do well!" The two threw open their arms.

"Lee!"

"Guy-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"They know each other's names... thats an andvancement in intelligence..." Neji spoke dryly, and his comment was ignored by the pair, who were now hugging fiercely. Tenten tittered.

Shikamaru and Neji, the most awake of the group, suddenly span around, sensing movement from down the street. They relaxed a little when they saw the orange tracksuit and yellow hair which signified the last member of the group.

Naruto did not stop as he passed the group. Mumbling greetings, he stumbled on. The rest of the group at least looked like they were awake, but a snore or two wouldn't have seemed out of place from Naruto at this point. The group, sensing that if he stopped he might not start again, decided it was best just to follow him. Lee caught up once he had finished his goodbyes, and Shikamaru directed Naruto onto the correct path by gently twisting the boy's shoulders to make him walk in the right direction. And so, the mission began.

--

The sun was well and truly visible by the time the group decided it was time to wake up Naruto so they could move at a decent pace. Hinata wanted him to be awoken in the normal way, but Sakura, who had grown more and more aggravated at the slow pace the zombiefied Naruto was setting, had a better idea, and the rest of the group, in a bout of cruelty that made Hinata somewhat upset, agreed. And so, Shikamaru gently steered Naruto off the path, towards a sound all ninja are trained to hear.

--

Naruto was aware of very little. Since Shikamaru had begun to steer him, his eyes had become barely open, little more than slits through which nothing could be seen. He was only aware of the occasional press of Shikamaru's hand, and that his feet always fell on solid ground.

Then suddenly, it didn't.

Naruto is a trained ninja, and has good reactions, even for a ninja. But he was not as fast as he needed to be here. One minuet he was walking, and then next he was falling, striaight into a deep pool of very cold water. With his pack, containing all his food, clothes and other needed items, still on his back. Once he submerged, he was quick to act, gathering chakra in his feet and rising effortlessly to the surface, but it was already too late for his gear. It was all soaked: his bag was waterproof, but not submergence- proof.

"Dammit, guys, is a bucket not enough?! I now have no clothes, no sleeping bag, no tent-"

"and we've just wasted two hours, moving at your pace, covering twenty mins ground in that time. Now stop complaining an move!" The group seemed to speak in unison, before launching themselves into the trees. Only Hinata remained.

"H-here, N-N-Naruto-K-Kun.. y-you ca-can u-u-us-use my t-towel..." she stuttered, holding out the cloth in question.

"Thanks, Hinata! Thats really nice... thanks a bunch!" he smiled, broad and happy, and began to rub his hair dry.

"N-Naru-Naruto-K-Kun, were g-going t-t-to g-get l-left be-behind..." She trailed off again. Naruto seemed to realize this too.

"Hey, yeah! C'mon, Hinata, we'd better get moving!" And he grabbed her hand, leaping into the trees.

_He's holding my hand!_ A voice in her head screamed, before she fainted.

Naruto noticed that his arm had just got a bit heavier. He looked down to see that the only thing keeping a rather unconscious Hinata in the air was his hand.

"Ah, Hinata?!" he cried.

--

Shikamaru looked worriedly over his shoulder, unable to see two of his teammates.

"Neji, check on them..." Nodding, Neji activated his byakugan. Suddenly he stopped, span to face the way they had come, and began to run back.

"NARUTO!!!"


	3. Chapter 2

He stopped when Naruto came into normal sight, carrying an unconscious Hinata bridal-style. Neji was hiding an incredible rage, that someone would insult the heir to the Hyuuga clan so. The only thing that stopped him hitting Naruto very hard was the fact that it would send Hinata flying as well.

"What... did... you... do... to her?" was all he could say.

"Nothing, I swear! She gave me her towel"- he indicated the cloth around his neck- "and I was drying myself, when she pointed out that we were going to get left behind. I grabbed her hand and started moving, and the next thing I knew she was unconscious! I checked for marks or some kind of attack, but there was none..." he stopped to breathe.

"Sounds like an attack of the emotions..." Ino muttered, catching up, just loud enough so that Naruto coulden't hear. Neji stepped forward to take Hinata, but Naruto stepped back.

"Leave her with him, Neji. He knocked her out, he can carry her." Sakura interjected, ignoring the fact that they would probably both catch a cold from the water Naruto was covered in. "besides, you know she'd enjoy waking up in his arms..." She continued, now too quiet to be heard by Naruto.

"She'd probably faint- again- so she can wake up in Naruto's arms- again." Ino was still muttering. The three awake girls giggled. At that moment, as if on cue, Hinata began to wake.

"Hinata!" Naruto cried happily.

"N-Naruto-K-kun?" She muttered groggily. Suddenly, her eyes shot open.

_I'm- I'm in his arms! He's carrying me! He must think I'm so weak!... I'm in his arms!_ And once more, Hinata fainted. The remaining girls broke out into full laughter. Naruto just looked confused. Shikamaru shighed. _Girls are so troublesome... and so is Naruto, for that matter._

"C'mon, we've gotta get moving." and the group began to move.

--

It was hours before the group finally stopped for the evening. Naruto's arms ached- every time Hinata had awoken, she had fainted again shortly after. This still had Naruto completely confused. All the boys had offered to carry her for a while, but Naruto had declined. She looked so peaceful, for some reason he kept looking at her. He just couldn't bring himself to put her down, or pass her on. People had stopped asking when, after one particularly stubborn refusal, Lee had suddenly started going on about how Naruto was using it as a chance to train, and spouting about the 'fire of youth' like a fountain until Neji had threatened that if Lee did not shut up Neji would use his 'fire of youth' to set fire to certain sections of Lee's spandex bodysuit. Lee, after recovering from falling off his tree in surprise at the outburst, had spent ten minuets loudly and continually challenging Neji to a fight, until Neji promised to fight when they stopped for camp. He had then convinced Shikamaru to keep going every time he had suggested they stop, until it was too dark to continue traveling. Lee, now practically bouncing, had barely been able to take his ready stance before Naruto had come between them.

"We should wait for Hinata to wake first. I think-"

"I want to fight, I have been waiting all day!" Lee interrupted him.

"For once, Naruto is right." Neji closed his eyes. "Hinata-sama won't like us fighting at all, but I think she would rather wake and be told we were going to fight than wake up to find us fighting. If she wakes up in the middle of the fight, she could misinterpret the situation..." Naruto placed Hinata gently on the ground. Neji fished a blanket out of his bag, and Hinata's head was rested on it. And so, the group began to wait. Much to Lee's disappointment, it was another hour before she awoke. And when she finally did, he gave no room for Neji to delay any further.

"What is... happening?" Hinata mumbled. Naruto, sat beside her, brightened up.

"Lee and Neji are sparring." he looked up to Shikamaru. "Who do you think will win?"

"Neji." Shikamaru's answer came quickly.

"What makes you say that? Has Lee not grown as much?" Shikamaru looked down at him.

"No- Lee has grown a lot. He may have even outgrown Neji. And Neji knows this."

"Then why will Neji win?"

"Simple. With his Byakugan, Neji can see, even in this darkness. Lee, however, cannot. Neji knows Lee might be strong enough to defeat him, so he postponed the fight until it was dark, giving himself the edge over Lee, who cannot see in this darkness. This makes it harder for Lee to attack as well as defend. Sadly, Lee was too busy trying to get his fight to notice. Lee may be strong, but his ninja thinking needs some work."

"Ah... wow, I should learn to think like you, Shikamaru... you're really smart..." Shikamaru looked at him.

"If you did, Tsunade would probably make you a Jonin, just by declaring it. She may even leap upon the chance to retire and give you the title of Hokage: you've already got so much power, sort your brains out and you'll be completely unstoppable!" he laughed, and so did Naruto.

"Yeah, I wish..." His attention turned to the fight. Shikamaru was proving to be right. Ino and Chouji stood, ready to step in at any moment if things got too rough. Sakura was pulling her gloves on.

Lee's attacks were visibly less accurate, as Shikamaru had predicted. They exchanged a few blows, before Neji decided it was time to finish the battle. Suddenly firing forward, he struck both of Lee's shoulders simultaneously, and Lee's arms went limp. But Lee could still fight with his legs, so ducking low, Neji aimed a kick at Lee's shins, which Lee jumped over. And as soon as he jumped, he realized his mistake. Neji stopped mid-sweep, laid his foot flat, and transferred his balance to it, slamming jyukken strikes into Lee's legs. Stuck in mid-air and unable to dodge, Lee crashed to the ground, his limbs useless. Neji straightened up.

"This is over." Shikamaru agreed, Ino and Chouji relaxed a little, and Sakura moved in to help Lee while Neji was congratulated by Naruto and Tenten.

"Nice one, Neji. Quite a plan. You also seem to have been taking a leaf outta Guy's book, I've seen him do that a few times..." Neji 'Humph'ed.

"That was really good, Neji! Well done!" something seemed to soften a little in Neji's eyes.

"...Thankyou, Tenten." something seemed different, as if he wasn't quite managing to suppress his emotions. Ino's eyes flashed, but she remained quiet. Meanwhile, Sakura's hands glowed with the green of medical chakra.

"There's not much I can do, except dull the pain and wait for the effect of the jyukken to wear off."

"It's okay, Sakura-san. Thankyou for what you have done." He smiled. "You had better set up your tent, I will be fine very soon." He had already begun to work motion back into his limbs. Sakura shook her head.

"I'm a medical ninja. I stay with the patient until they are fully healed." Lee's smile broadened.

"Thankyou, Sakura-san." Shikamaru stood.

"We should start to pitch tents. Let's go, people." And with that, he pulled out the poles of his and Chouji's tent. Everyone split into pairs, as they had arranged the tents, except Hinata, who had chosen to sleep alone, and Naruto, who had forgotten to turn up to that meeting. The girls where, Hinata noticed, all in one tent, exept for her, making the only group of three. Hinata's tent went up relativity quickly, for a solo job by a girl who had been unconscious for most of the day. Naruto, however, found that both his tent and his sleeping bag were completely waterlogged, and so he hung them to dry a little outside the campsite and began to gather wood for a fire. By the time all the tents were up, Naruto had a roaring fire going, and his sleeping bag hung over it to dry. Naruto, who was sat by the fire himself, felt his stomach rumble, and looked around to see everyone else unpacking food. His stomach increased the volume. A lot. Groaning, he stood, checked his sleeping bag, found it was dry, and rolled it up before heading over to his bag. He placed his sleeping bag on a dry patch beside it, and began to rummage through, first drawing a set of clothes to dry, then checked his food.

"Guys, my food's all waterlogged..."

"Well, you should look where you walk, then, shouldn't you..."

"You could at least of taken my bag off..."

"I feel bad now. I believe that someone should share their food with Naruto!"

"No, Lee! He'll eat it all!"

"I'll-"

"It was Sakura's idea, she should share her food."

"I'll-"

"If your so desperate for him to eat, why don't you share yours, Ino-pig?!"

"What was that, Forehead-girl?!"

"I'll-"

"Chouji's got plenty, maybe he should share?"

"I'LL SHARE WITH NARuto-k-k-kun..." When she finally made herself heard, her voice faded as all eyes turned to her.

"But that is unfair, she was against the prank!" Hinata blushed at the look Naruto gave her.

"Well, if she's willing to share with the bottomless ramen bucket, its fine with me..." Naruto got up and went back over to his bag, thoroughly checking for anything that might be serviceable. When he came back, he had a small bag of ramen in his hand, which had wedged itself inside his waterproof as he had hastily packed.

"There's not much of it, but if we put what you have together with it, maybe we can make a meal for two...?" Hinata smiled and nodded. Ino giggled.

"Sounds like a date to me..." Hinata froze and invented eight new shades of blush, all very dark, faster than Neji could say 'Hakke'(A/N for those who don't know, 'Hakke' means 'eight trigrams' which is a motif used in most main branch Jyukken techniques). Ino's eyes flashed, but before she could sat more, Neji threw her a silenceing look. He atmosphere returned to normal and after being worried about by Naruto and nearly fainting again when he placed his hand on her forehead to check if she had a temperature, Hinata started to cook for herself and Naruto. Once the food was cooked, Naruto wasted no time in devouring the rather large portion she had given him.

"Wow, Hinata, this is really good!" he exclaimed between mouthfuls. To his and everyone else's great surprise, once his bowl was empty, he sat back, satisfied. "That really was great, Hinata! I didn't know you were such a good cook!" He smiled.

"...never said that about me..." Sakura muttered, but no-one noticed.

The rest of the evening passed with little event. The members of the team shared stories that had been told by there senseis on similar occasions, and a few that they had made up themselves. As the world around them got slowly darker, Shikamaru sat up, finally unable to make out the clouds at all anymore, and spoke to the group.

"Better get undercover, guys. It's gonna rain soon." No-one questioned the wisdom of the team leader, but Naruto did have a question.

"Erm... where do I go? My tent is still soaked..." Shikamaru gave him an annoyed look.

"I don't know. I do know, however, that you can't go with me and Chouji- we've got a two-man tent, with our packs theres no room to move, let alone fit in anther person..."

"You're not sleeping with us, Naruto. God knows what you'd try to do to us in our sleep..." Naruto Blushed indignantly, and the other boys laughed.

"I am sorry, Naruto-kun, but we have no space either." Naruto sighed.

"Geh... If I'd known it was going to rain I could have built myself a shelter..." Shikamaru laughed.

"Looks like you are seeing the advantages of foresight after all..." Ino seemed to have a brainwave, and jumping up, she scuttled over to Hinata and began to whisper in her ear. Hinata went very red. Naruto began to worry about the looks he was beginning to get from Ino, Sakura and Tenten, who had all been whispering and looking at him strangely since the meal. Ino backed away from Hinata, and looked at her encouragingly. Hinata looked back at her, fearful. Ino, clearly deciding Hinata wasn't going to act, raised her voice.

"Hinata brought a two-man tent just in case, why don't you share with her?" Naruto looked at Ino, then at Hinata, questioningly. He found her gaze was just as questioning as his. Feeling something on his side, he turned to see Sakura and Tenten looking at him, pointedly.

"Ah...um... o... ok..." Ino jumped up and down and squealed, causing all the boys to clap their hands to their ears. Hinata shut her eyes, willing herself not to faint again. When she re-opened them, the fire was out, Naruto had taken down his tent, and wrapped it with his bag in his waterproof so he could leave it outside without it getting wet. Yawning, Hinata entered her tent, shoved her stuff over to make room for Naruto, and crawled into her sleeping bag.

--

A/N: At just over three pages, this is by far the longest chapter I've written. Go me!

Please R&R!


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: Just a brief Note to say thankyou to everyone who has reviewed so far, especially to KrillinFan who has reviewed every chapter so far, starting minutes after I first posted. Thanks:D **

**Also, to note my use of the Japanese language. Some of you may have noticed I started without using any, but later began to bring in some honorifics even though I'd started with calling Tsunade 'Lady Tsunade' rather than 'Tsunade-Sama'. This is mainly because I started wishing to use none rather than a little, and this changed when I decided I would look like an idiot if I made Lee yell 'Teacher Gai!' or 'Mr Gai!'. And Lee so, even more than usual. I felt a little harsh at this notion. So, from now on, I will use honourifics, but no random Japanese words, and technique names, saving Jyukken which sounds silly as 'Gentle Fist', will be in english, i.e Kage Bunshin jutsu-- Shadow clone jutsu. Will keep the word Jutsu because the dubbers did.**

**Sorry for the long note... :P**

**Enjoy!**

--

"Please rise and shine, Hinata-san, Naruto-kun! We must be leaving soon!" was the noise that awakened Hinata. Moaning, she reached over, unzipped her bag, and began to fish clean clothes out of it. The cloth her hand met felt unfamiliar, and it was strangely warm, as was... something firm underneath it. Sitting up, Hinata opened her eyes to see what was up with her bag. Her eyes widened and she blushed deeply when, seeing Naruto face-down beside her, she remembered the events of the previous day, and when she noticed where her hand was, she opened her mouth and screamed.

--

Neji, already up and eating (it was impossible not to be when sharing a tent with Lee, who was up and training at dawn), leapt up at the sound of screaming from Hinata's tent. He sprinted over to the tent in question and opened it so quickly it nearly ripped, but he didn't care. Staring into the tent, he found Hinata curled in one corner, out cold, and Naruto curled in the opposite corner, clutching his ears and whimpering about things that go bump in the night. Naruto slowly moved his hands, and Neji was about to lay into him when Sakura stuck her head under his arm and made a comment first.

"I thought you where over your fear of ghosts, Naruto?" She grinned evilly. Neji 'Humph'ed and turned away, walking back to his food, his emotions once again under control.

"What fear? I have no fear!" Sakura opened her mouth to respond, but Naruto was quicker. "And give me some privacy, I need to get changed!" he pointed to the pile of clothes he had dried over the fire the previous night. Sakura's grin continued.

"I'm a trained med-nin, Naruto. There's nothing you have that I haven't seen." Naruto paled. "Although, from what Sai says, you're missing an article or two..." She ducked and pulled away from the tent as Naruto threw whatever came to hand at her- namely, his sleeping bag. Naruto swiftly shut the tent from the inside, and pulled off his shirt as he turned around. To find Hinata just waking up.

The sound of screaming filled the campsite once again.

--

All returned to normal at the campsite- once Sakura and Tenten found Hinata after she had come screaming out of her tent and sprinted surprisingly quickly into the forest. And after Naruto and Hinata had gotten changed- in separate tents. Breakfast was rather quiet, in the absence of Lee, who had already eaten and was off training, and Neji, who was taking down his and Lee's tent. They sat in a circle: Shikamaru and Chouji next to one another, Ino beside Chouji. Sakura and Tenten sat beside her. Then was a stratiegicly placed Hinata. Naruto completed the circle. Naruto couldn't look at Hinata without bulshing, which saved Hinata a fair amount of blushing anyway,as he simply chose not to look at her, although a fairly large part of her was upset about this. However, used to things not going her way, she simply got on with eating, albeit sadly.

Inside Naruto's head, chaos reigned, for a change. However, this time the subject was not the latest jutsu, nor was it the dark-haired Uchiha so far away, or the loud kunoichi who sat opposite him. It was the qiet, shy kunoichi who sat beside him. He could not fathom why, after so many years of not giving a rat's ass what people thought of him, he struggled so much with the fact that the sight of him topless had sent her screaming to the hills. He looked at Shikamaru, beside him. How would he approach it? He seemed to be able to think through anything. Deciding to try his hand at the 'Shika-style', cleared his mind and focused. He started by looking at the memories he had of her. The closest and most prominent was one that had happened only yesterday: the peaceful look on her face as he carried her through the forest. He had been strangely unable to look away from her face... _So, I worry about what she thinks of me because I think she's pretty?_ He blinked. _Wait, pretty? When did...? gah. That's not it, or it'd apply to Sakura-chan too._ He continued, back. They had been on a mission together shortly after his return to Konoha, but he could remember little of that. Before that... the Bicojuu mission? _Yeah, Hinata used that really powerful jutsu. I still think it could stop the Rasengan..._ And before then- Naruto could only remember the preliminaries, and that occasion jut before the finals. But... before then, nothing. This angle exhausted, he looked for another, as he thought Shikamaru would. Who else's opinion did he care about? He decided to leave out the obvious, and moved on to Jiraiya. He cared about ero-sennin's view of him because... _next._ Kakashi-sensei, what about him? _Erm..._ Yamato? _Uhh..._ Naruto's mind slowly began to draw lines. _Well, I respect them all, because they are strong, most stronger than me._ Naruto's outlook brightened at this development. It then took him a while to connect the next two points.

_So... maybe... I think she's strong? Well, I know she's strong, that jutsu of hers could repel anything, even my rasengan... wait, thats it! I respect her because she's strong, maybe as strong as me!_ Naruto smiled. So that was why he was so worried. _Although,_ a quiet voice in his head murmured, _She always seems so quiet, and she blushes every time I talk to her..._ Something shifted inside Naruto. His eyes slammed open as he recognized the voice that reverberated through his head.

_**Ku ku ku... so, you've finally cottoned on, eh?**_

**A/N: sorry it's taken so long and it's so short, but I wanted to leave it there. Not much of a cliffy, but I still like it **

**As for the time, between school work, the volenteer work school is making me do, and making my cosplay for saturday (Shikamaru:D) I have, like, no time. I'll start the next chapter right away, I promise!**


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry for the long delay on this one. I have been on half term, but my time has been eaten up by Schoolwork- I was given a small moutain of it, I swear- and reading other people's fics. I have finally produced this, and will try and be a little more prompt with my updates in future.**

**Last time: _So... maybe... I think she's strong? Well, I know she's strong, that jutsu of hers could repel anything, even my rasengan... wait, thats it! I respect her because she's strong, maybe as strong as me!_ Naruto smiled. So that was why he was so worried. _Although,_ a quiet voice in his head murmured, _She always seems so quiet, and she blushes every time I talk to her..._ Something shifted inside Naruto. His eyes slammed open as he recognized the voice that reverberated through his head.**

--

Naruto sat, shocked, as the laughter of the 9-tailed fox bounced around his head.

_...What? When did you...?_

_**Ever since you first drew too deeply on my chakra for you to control... the seal cracked. I have simply been hiding it from you, since I suspect if the pervert found out, he'd want to fix it. I'm not going to lose this freedom because I was reckless with it...**_ Naruto struggled to hide his fear and worry from those around him.

_The seal...?_ The fox only laughed in response.

_**Ku ku ku... you are easily distracted, aren't you? Aren't you going to scream about what it is you have finally realized?**_

_...What? What did i just realize, stupid fox?_ The kitsune laughed, again.

_**Point proven.**_ Naruto was confused for a second, before finally working out what the fox was doing.

_Stop messing with my head, stupid fox! Shut Up!_ He screamed the last to words in his head, and a battle ensued, during which Naruto mentally forced the demon into the sealed cage from whence it had propelled it's consciousness. The kyuubi suppressed, Naruto began to relax within his mind, when he was suddenly shaken by a soft hand.

"N-Naruto-K-k-kun?" Naruto opened his eyes to find himself looking straight at Hinata, now in front of him. They both went very red.

"You looked a little strange, Naruto. We decided to check on you, but you weren't responding to us calling you."

"I looked... strange?"

"Yeah, almost as if you were _thinking_..." Ino laughed as she finished the sentence.

"Hey!" Naruto began to protest loudly. Shikamaru cut in before he could start.

"I can't be bothered to wait for you people to end this troublesome argument, so whether you're finished or not, we have a lot of ground to cover today, after yesterday's troublesomeness..." And, having finished his food, Shikamaru got up and walked over to take down his tent. He was soon followed by Chouji, and not long after, the three girls left to take down their tent. Naruto was left with Hinata. Naruto put his bowl down, and forced the embarrassment he felt at looking Hinata in the eye down with it, covering it with his trademark grin.

"Thanks for the food, again. I'll go take down the tent.' as he turned, Hinata began to haltingly respond.

"D-d-do-don't w-w-worry, Na-Naruto-k-kun, I'll- I'll help w-with i-it..." her eyes widened as Naruto turned around, and smiled.

"No, Hinata. You set the tent up on your own, and you shared your food with me. I'll take the tent down, and when we get to the sand village, I'm gonna take you out for a meal, to say thank you!" he turned and began work on the tent, still smiling.

_He... said he'd... _Hinata stared for a while, blankly. She blinked, still fighting the urge to faint again, and decided the best way to deal with it was to stop thinking about it, and began to do the things Naruto had done the night before. Once she had put the fire out and covered the fireplace, she took down Naruto's still wet tent, and rolled it up, placing it beside his bag, which had been protected through the night by his waterproof. Naruto wondered over to her, carrying her tent, now packed and ready to be put in a bag. When he saw what Hinata had been doing, his grin spread back over his face.

"Oi, Hinata... thanks for all this, and stuff, but... you've really gotta stop doing all these nice things for me, at this rate I'll never be able to pay you back!" Hinata blushed.

"s-sorry, N-Naruto-k-kun..." Naruto's grin widened.

"You don't need to be sorry, Hinata! It's not your fault you're such a nice person." Hinata bushed in a way which only she is capable of, because her blood seemed to have adapted to be a darker shade of red than everyone else's.

--

The girls watched Naruto and Hinata from the other side of the campsite, where they had already taken down their own tent. Sakura laughed.

"Those two are so cute together... although, I am starting to worry about how dense Naruto is... I mean, I know he's a little stupid, but this takes the biscuit..." Ino grinned.

"You're only saying that cos if those two get together, you won't have to deal with Naruto's constant attempts to convince you to go out with him. I remember the time in the acadamy when..." Sakura zoned out as Ino started to go on, staring at some of the lower branches of the trees and wondering about the third member of the old team 7. Her gaze slowly lowered, and when she came back to her senses, she found herself staring at Lee, who noticed and gave her his 'nice guy' pose, complete with the tooth twinkle that was probably some sort of forbidden technique known only by himself and Gai. She smiled softly at him, then realized Ino had stopped talking. She turned to see Ino's eyes flashing evilly. Sakura looked away from her again.

"I don't know what you're insinuating by that look, Ino..." Ino only smirked, tidying that little slip away for later.

"So, what do you think of those two, Tenten?" Ino asked, leaving an obvious and very intentional ambiguity about who 'those two' were. She turned to look at Tenten, and was surprised to see there was no-one there.

--

Neji did not move as he sensed Tenten approaching him on the outskirts of the camp. He was crouched slightly, his bag ready on his back.

" Are you ok, Neji? Sharing a tent with Lee must have been an... interesting thing to experience on your own."

"I do not see why. We both slept." His response was a emotionless as always. Tenten looked a little exasperated.

"You know, you can let your guard down when you talk to your friends. It's not like I'm an enemy ninja trying to find something to get to you with..." she sighed, and was startled when Neji turned to her and activated his byakugan. She continued to look at him quizzically when he deactivated it.

"Sorry." he said with the closest thing to a smile she had ever seen on him. "just checking." She giggled for a few seconds before looking at Neji worriedly.

"Are you feeling okay, Neji? You are aware that you just made a joke, right?" his almost-a-smile widened.

"I am perfectly fine, Tenten. Am I not allowed to let my guard down when I talk to my friends?" Tenten opened her mouth to respond, ready to point out just how out-of-character he seemed to be being this morning and ask who had prepared his food, when she found him staring into her eyes, and herself staring right back. _I don't think I've ever seen such an intense shade of white..._ The two slowly drew together, before two rather nosy girls ruined the moment, staring at them from what they clearly thought was an inconspicuous distance of five feet away. When the two teammates looked away from each other and toward the 'intruders', the two girls waved their hands, chattering 'Oh, don't mind us' and 'Were not really here, honest'. Tenten sighed and looked back to Neji, who had replaced his emotionless mask, betrayed only by a slight coloring in his cheeks. "If everyone is perfectly ready?" he turned to look at the now ready team, more directly at Shikamaru. Although they were equal in rank, Shikamaru had been made the leader of the mission.

"Yeah, lets get this troublesome mission over so we can sleep in decent beds tonight." And with that he launched into the trees, swiftly followed by his team.

**A/N there it is! Did everyone like it? Tell me, R&R! It's good for my soul...**


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